Hello? I've just got to let you know...

I've been thrown recently by finding out that a friend from high school had died three years ago.
I was thrown, because in my mind he was still 17, with hair, a cheeky grin and a wicked sense of humour.
I was thrown, because I have been writing YA and thinking about my Year 12 (Form 6 year) so he was
very vivid in my mind. I imagined discussing some details with him.

But Kismet has a way of finding me.
Another friend from that era got in touch through Facebook several days ago and mentioned this death
in casual conversation.

I have met many other people since high school, some who still remain friends, so I wonder why it is
that high school friends and the time spent there has such a nostalgic pull.
Was it because it was a time of 'firsts' or such intense emotions
that we learn to reign in as we became adults?

Maybe it is because it is a time of such promise.
We are invincible.

Vale Tony.

Goodies vs Baddies just the themes that change

That's Bond - James Bond. (Well, actually, that's Sean Connery, who was the best Bond in my opinion.) Just watching him tonight and thinking that the evil depicted in the movies of my childhood often centered on the Cold War. Today the baddies are often eco-terrorists or careless and greedy countries/people who have plundered the earth for their own selfish ends.

In the end, though, it just comes down to goodies vs baddies. Good hopefully triumphing over evil.

The kind of stories that give the reader/viewer hope for the future.

Willy Fest

Had fun at Willy Fest on May 1 with a group of writers armed with paper, pen and ready to write. I rarely get to this part of the world and I was struck by how gorgeous it is. A nice sunny day, the sun glinting off the waves, and some sail boats showing off their snowy white sails. As always, the festival volunteers were fab and all deserved medals. What a nice way to spend the day.

In Short

Okay, going to break my rule of never responding to book reviews.

After a nice review for Short and Scary in The Sunday Age, Young Lit section several weeks ago, I was surprised to see a review in today's Sat Age.

The readership for the anthology was years 8 - 14. There is no mention of this in the review which is flanked by adult titles such as The Woman Who Shot Mussolini and 35 Arguments for the Existence of God.

The idea for the short series was a mentoring program, matching established authors and illustrators with emerging talent, both young and old. There is no mention of this in the critique either. (Although there was mention of one contributor's poem as mediocre will probably have the 16 year old author running for cover.)

Feedback from teachers and readers about the short series has been positive. It is a smorgasbord of stories and poetry that young readers can dip into. That's what makes it work for young readers. Perhaps the reviewer is better suited to reviewing adult books...?

Is this your little one?

Someone thrust a copy of The Sunday Age magazine at me the other day and said, 'Is this yours?'
I felt like a proud parent — there was Short and Scary, a nice big cover, and a lovely review from Frances Atkinson.
No, not mine, but a proud parent nevertheless.
The illustration here is from Tegan Bell, a student who is interested in pursuing art as a career. Congrats to Tegan and the other students who made the final cut.

Sshhhhhhh

Went to the local library for a change of scenery armed with laptop and water bottle. Turns out it was preschool Monday, with singing (The Wheels on the Bus go round and round), excited tots and one emotional boy who didn't want to be there and then didn't want to go. At some point, though, it just became a white noise and I tapped away at my keyboard until the strains of Twinkle Twinkle filtered through and it was time to go home...

Oh, so that's how you do it

In an effort not to repeat the excruciating writing effort of the day before, I shunned the office and laptop yesterday, changed locations to the lounge room (best room in the house), and grabbed loose lined pages and a fine Bic pen and wrote. Hmmm, that seemed to work. No way I could check my emails or any of those other things I do online.
Whatever works.